Lewis Hamilton was nearly sacked by Mercedes – over his frosty relationship with previous team-mate Nico Rosberg.

Mercedes non-executive chairman Niki Lauda revealed the feud between the two nearly ended up with them both being fired.

His breaking point came when both drivers crashed out in the first lap of the Barcelona Grand Prix.

Lauda said: “We put some regulations in, we told them – especially in Barcelona when they pushed each other off the track – we said this was unacceptable for Mercedes and one of you guys has to win.

“You cannot push each other off.

“We had some rules put in, that you are not allowed to (collide) and you have to pay a penalty if you do it again or we will think of releasing you from your contract, because we are team players here and we cannot destroy each other.”

F1 journalist Alan Baldwin believes Ferrari are under a huge amount of pressure going into the United States Grand Prix.

“Ferrari are under a huge amount of pressure,” he explained to Sky Sports.

“They have slipped away on both fronts and I think there is no question Mercedes will win the Constructors' Championship this weekend.

“I think the drivers' title will go down to Mexico but I'm getting prepared for Lewis to win it this weekend because the way the last three races have gone, it could easily be that Ferrari have another problem.

“Ferrari are under pressure because they've had three races where it hasn't gone to plan. They were so close up until Singapore and suddenly they have just imploded.

“They have got to show that they have got a grip on things…and I'm not sure they have.”

Pirelli will provide tyres with a pink trim this weekend to help F1 support breast cancer awareness month in the United States.

A short statement from the tyre company explained: “Pirelli is completely behind this key initiative, using its tyres to get the impactful message across.

“It's a symbol of solidarity and commitment, as well as a powerful reminder of the importance of the cause. So, this weekend, make sure you think pink.”

Hamilton can seal the 2017 drivers’ championship this weekend by outscoring Sebastian Vettel by 16 points and team-mate Valtteri Bottas by three points.